BOSTON >> The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced today it would provide an additional $2.7 million for 27 local homeless assistance programs across Connecticut, according to a department press release issued Thursday.

The money will be funded through HUD’s Continuum of Care program, and is designed to ensure permanent and transitional housing renewal projects are able to continue running in the coming year, the release stated.

The $2.7 million appropriated to Connecticut is just a fraction of the $140 million in additional funding HUD announced it would provide for nearly 900 homeless assistance programs nationwide. Altogether, the grants will fund 436 new local projects aimed to help provide permanent housing for the chronically homeless through a “Housing First” program, and a program to “Rapidly Re-house” families with children living on the street or in emergency shelters, according to the release.

HUD secretary Shaun Donovan said he believes these types of programs are critical to fighting homelessness in America.

Advertisement

“Communities all across the country are changing their approach to reducing homelessness and now is not the time to retreat from doing what we know works,” Donovan said, according to the release. “Investing in proven strategies such as ‘Rapid Re-housing’ and ‘Housing First’ help to break the cycle of homelessness as we’ve known it in these communities.”

HUD’s latest announcement comes on the heels of a $1.6 billion national funding program it announced in April. Connecticut received $32.2 million in the first round of funding, which was used to support 159 local homeless housing and service programs, the release stated.